Fright night

We're fast approaching Halloween and Rizwana would like to see spooktacular makes for our challenge over at Daring Cardmakers this week.

I don't own any stamps or other supplies that are spooky so I found a way to improvise and made a postcard! I used a cheesecloth background stamp and torn edges as masks to create a "wrapped bandage" effect  and a longer word ("KABOOM!") with selective inking and a marker pen to fill in missing lines for the sentiment. The eyes are drawn using circle dies as templates.

This year may have gone wonky in many ways but Lost Coast Designs have their usual 31 Days of Halloween going on so I'm linking up there, too.

Stamps:
Cheesecloth backgrounder (Cornish Heritage Farms, no longer with us)
Kaboom (Waltzingmouse Stamps, no longer with us)

Paper:
Bristol board

Ink:
Tim Holtz Distress ink by Ranger (Vintage Photo)
Brilliance by Tsukineko (Graphite Black)

Other:
Copic markers
Black fineliner 
Circle Nestabilities by Spellbinder (to draw round)
White paint pen by Posca
Microglaze

Thanks for stopping by, hope you are keeping safe and well.

Dictionary day

It's my turn to set the challenge over at Daring Cardmakers this week and as today is World Dictionary Day and I need very little excuse to celebrate words I thought we could focus on them today - a dictionary definition, book or dictionary page, or make words the focal point of your project.

After a couple of false starts (why your own challenges are always hardest is one of life's mysteries up there with single sock syndrome) I came up with the idea of combining with another challenge to help kickstart and made this.

Retro Rubber has a tic tac toe challenge and I used that to give me the extra push. I chose a diagonal of rhinestones/pearls/dots, die cut/punch and metallics. The whole card front is die cut with a stitched rectangle, the sentiment is cut with another (modified to make it a shade longer to suit the stamp).

This background is designed as a texture plate for use with a gel plate, polymer clay etc but I could see no reason it couldn't be used as a regular stamp and indeed it worked just fine! I stamped on black cardstock and used metallic Perfect Pearls in a couple of autumnal shades before doodling some details with copper and gold gel pens and adding dots of gold dimensional paint to finish.

Stamps:
Sarah's Choice (Indigo Blu - had mine since 2011)
Texture Plate 3 (Art by Marlene line at Studio Light - around April 2019 I think)

Paper:
Black
Bristol board

Ink:
Brilliance by Tsukineko (Graphite Black)

Other:
Perfect Pearls by Ranger (Perfect Gold, Copper)
Gel pens (gold and copper)
Dimensional paint by Dylon (gold)
Stitched Rectangle dies A6 size (Paper Rose Studio)

Thanks for stopping by, hope you are keeping safe and well.

Mail art in the time of Covid-19!

Svenja has set our challenge this week at Daring Cardmakers and as it's world post day, she'd like to see some mail art (or anything inspired by the phrase). 

I decided to have a go at some actual, on-the-envelope mail art using a business size envelope.

I hand drew the mask which is where the address will get written. The stamp will fill in the space top right between the airmal sticker and the pencils. I bought the Face It stamps on sale quite a while ago but must confess I haven't got round to using them until now. I did some basic colouring with Copic markers since they should be pretty weather-proof if the envelope gets caught in a shower en route! The envelope paper is not great for blending so I kept the coluring pretty simple.

Stamps
Face It (Visible Image
Pencils border (Lost Coast Designs)

Paper:
Business envelope

Ink:
Brilliance by Tsukineko (Graphite Black)

Other:
Copic markers

Thanks for stopping by, I hope everyone is keeping safe and well.

October’s elements

Dawn has chosen a lovely picture for inspiration for our ‘elemental’ challenge over at Daring Cardmakers this week.  As ever, just choose at least three elements to kickstart your project. 

I picked the cable knit, book page, twine, autumn leaf and airmail envelope stripes for a collage-style card.

We recently had a good clear out prior to getting our dining room plastered and there were a couple of books that were too shabby to donate to a charity shop so I “rehomed” them in the craft room and used a page here. I embossed a torn piece of kraft cardstock and layered up with a stamped leaf and some twine. I’d just finished a book of airmail stamps and there’s a little sticker strip along the edge of the book so I used that to underline the sentiment. 

Retro Rubber’s current challenge is “anything goes” and as I’ve had the leaf set for five years or more, I’m playing along there too. 

Stamps:
Falling Leaves (Tim Holtz/Stampers Anonymous - I’ve had mine five years or so) Sentiment from Say It All (Hero Arts, retired)

Paper:
Bristol board
Kraft
Old book page

Ink:
Brilliance by Tsukineko (Pearlescent Chocolate)

Other:
Crochet thread
Copic markers
Cable knit Dynamic Impressions embossing folder (Stampin Up!)
Airmail stripes from book of stamps

Here's the inspiration picture if you would like to join in with us at DCM this week:

Thanks for stopping by!

S is for...

Well, Kathy over at Daring Cardmakers thinks S is for September - our challenge this week is to include at least three things beginning with S on our cards. Extra brownie points if you can manage six or even seven things!

I decided S was really for Santa so I could use the opportunity to add another Christmas card to my barely-started stash. I managed Santa in Silver Specs, a Stamped Sentiment with Snowflakes and some Sequins so I earned the extra brownie points for seven Ss while still managing to keep it CAS!

The Cool Yule dies were on sale recently and I found myself unable to resist, mostly for this Santa and the fabulous reindeer head in the set (which will make a debut soon, I'm sure).

The sentiment comes from a set I was lucky enough to win in Rudolph's Random Raffle over at Christmas Kickstart a while back - thanks Rudolph (and Jo!). 

Supplies:
Cool Yule dies (Tim Holtz/Sizzix)
Fine frames circles die (Altenew)
Bristol board
Silver mirri card
Copic markers
Tim Holtz Distress ink by Ranger (Antique Linen)
Memento Luxe ink by Tsukineko (Love Letter)
Sequins
Corner Chomper

Thanks for stopping by!

Masculine makes

Our challenge over at Daring Cardmakers today is set by Dawn. She says she always struggles with masculine cards so she's looking for ideas so that she can have a stack at hand - show us your masculine makes!

The men I make cards for tend to like clean and simple, no frills designs. In fact, while I was snapping this card, my hubby walked past and said "Oh, that's a nice one!" So, ink, stamps and an aperture cut with a die to use as a stencil and that's as fancy as this got. I have a couple of acetate sheets with various size circles cut in them that live on my desk ready for use as stencils.

Stamps:
Teasels (Bee Crafty)
Sentiment from Big Day Today (Waltzingmouse Stamps, no longer with us)

Paper:
Bristol board

Ink:
Tim Holtz Distress ink by Ranger (Mustard Seed, Spiced Marmalade, Barn Door, Fired Brick)
Versafine by Tsukineko (Onyx Black)

Other:
"Stencil" cut with circle Nestie
Corner Chomper

Thanks for stopping by, hope you are keeping safe and well and managing to carry on as near normal as possible with whatever restrictions you have in place for your area.

Link in the chain - August (and July!)

It's reveal time again over at Card Chain Challenge. My card this month went to Kath so it didn't have too far to travel.

From the options on offer, I chose the themes of summer and friendship. Summer seemed like the perfect excuse to revist this sweet image. I thought simple pencil colouring might work (although not so well for the photograph, it turns out!) and used the Toned Grey paper again as a nice neutral, slightly sandy base.

Stamps:
Seaside (Craft Secrets, no longer with us)

Paper:
Toned Grey by Strathmore

Ink:
Brilliance by Tsukineko (Pearlescent Chocolate)
Tim Holtz Distress ink by Ranger (Antique Linen)

Other:
Stitched rectangle dies (Paper Rose Studio)
Coloured pencils

I realised I forgot to blog July's chain card so I'll do that here too, just so I have a record if I check back on my blog! This one went to Helen and I chose the underwater theme, the colours and the sketch (mirror image as my octopus faces right).

I used the MISTI and stamped dark to light so I cold heat emboss the solid layer of the image so the octopus would resist the inking for the background circle - sure beats trying to mask those fiddly tentacles!

Stamps:
Color Layering Octopus (Hero Arts)

Paper:
Bristol board

Ink:
I don't remember but Distress and Oxides in Wilted Violet, Milled Lavender, Tumbled Glass and Salty Ocean probably went in there somewhere! I do rememeber the sentiment is Charcoal by Hero Arts.

Other:
Detail embossing powder (clear)
Sequins
Stickles (Frosted Lace)
Stencil (Fibres by Visible Image)
MISTI

Thanks for stopping by, hope you are keeping safe and well. There are still a few days to sign up for the September chain if you fancy making and sending a card and getting one from another chain member. sign up here.

Say cheese!

Miri is setting our challenge over at Daring Cardmakers this week and she's given us a "picture perfect" theme, so a camera, picture frame, polaroid layout or a real photo would all fit the bill.

I needed a card for a 50th wedding anniversary - this camera is pretty much exactly what a 1970 one would have looked like and one of the recipients worked in the family’s camera shop so this seemed just right for the job. I added the 50 by hand in the blank part of the image and stamped the anniversary sentiment on a second Polaroid cut out and stuck under the first.

Stamps:
Say Cheese (digi by Dr Digi)
Sentiment from a Waltzingmouse Stamps set (no longer with us)

Paper:
Copy paper (to print digi image)
Bristol board
DCWV textured

Ink:
Versafine by Tsukineko (Onyx Black)

Other:
Copic markers
Black fineliner 
Stitched square frames dies (Paper Rose Studio)
Fine Frames circle dies (Altenew)

Thanks for stopping by, hope you are keeping safe and well.

August elements

It's the first Friday of a new month so over at Daring Cardmakers that means an "elemental" challenge - just use at least three elements of the inspiration picture to kickstart your project.

It’s my turn to provide the picture this time and I put together a little montage of objects to photograph. I intended to make something light and summery but my supplies had other ideas!

In the end the elements I chose were white line art on a black background (from the book at the bottom), leafy stem, two circles (inspired by cup and saucer) and rectangle (inspired by the books). The leafy stem is die cut from a piece in my scraps pile that had Brusho colour on it. 

Stamps:

Sketchy leaf from a set by Sheena Douglass

Say It All (Hero Arts, retired)

Paper:

Black

Bristol board 

Brusho coloured scrap

Ink:

Versamark by Tsukineko 

Brilliance by Tsukineko (Graphite Black)

Other:

Embossing powder by Wow (Bright White)

Tim Holtz/Sizzix Wildflowers 1 dies

Altenew Fine Frames circles die

Fineline marker

Here's the inspiration picture, we'd love to have you join us over at DCM!

Power of three

It's my turn to set the challenge over at Daring Cardmakers this week. As it’s the anniversary of the birth of Alexandre Dumas, I thought we might celebrate The Three Musketeers by featuring threes on our projects this week.

I opted for three circles and three dots of Enamel Accents on a masculine birthday card. I got some toned grey paper for Christmas having seen some lovely pencil colouring done on it and I’m ashamed to say I’ve only just had a first play with it! I’ve opted for more of a simple sketch book look, too.

Embossing adds some textural interest for a limited colour palette. I inked the folder so there’s a bit extra shading going on, too. I still had the pearlescent watercolours out on my desk from last week's card so I spattered some gold on the panel before sticking down the elements.

Stamps:
Antique Engravings and Say It All (both Hero Arts, retired)

Paper:
Toned grey (Strathmore)
Bristol board 

Ink:
Shadow ink by Hero Arts (Soft Granite)
Versafine by Tsukineko (Smokey Gray)

Other:
Coloured pencils (white and two greys)
Charcoal pencil
Circles dies by Spellbinder
Fine frames circle die by Altenew
Stitched rectangles A6 dies by Paper Rose Studio
Shell Beauty M-Bossabilities by Spellbinder
Metallic gold pen
Metallic gold paint
Enamel Accents by Ranger

Thanks for stopping by, please do continue to take care as we ease out of lockdown and, if you’re in England, don’t forget your mask from today if you’re heading out to the shops!